Similar images vs. duplicates
Similar images find lookalikes in preview; duplicate detection finds exact file copies after upload.
Use this article to understand the difference between "Similar" images and "Duplicates" in Clipido, and which feature to use when two photos look related but are not the same file.
These are two separate features. Similar images and duplicate detection use different methods, appear in different places, and lead to different actions.
Similar images: finding photos that look alike
"Similar" finds images in the current gallery that look visually alike to the file you are previewing. It compares visual embeddings, not file bytes.
Open a file preview in Media and click the "Similar" tab in the side panel. The panel explains "Here you will find similar assets". Results stay in the current gallery only.
"Similar" is browse-only. There is no review step and no automatic archiving. Use it when you want to see what else looks like a photo, such as alternate angles or crops of the same scene.
"Similar" works on images only. For videos or documents, the panel shows "Similar is only available for images." If embeddings are still generating, you may see "Not ready" and "The file may not be fully ready yet."
Duplicates: finding files with identical content
"Duplicate detection" finds files with "identical content", the same bytes uploaded more than once. Clipido hashes each file after processing and groups exact matches together.
Duplicate detection runs automatically after upload processing finishes. It does not use visual similarity. Two different exports of the same photo, or a crop and the original, are "not" flagged as duplicates unless the file bytes are identical.
When duplicates are found, the upload timeline shows "Duplicate detection" with "N duplicate(s) detected" and a Review button. Resolved duplicates are handled in "Review → Duplicates", where you Choose Keep or "Remove" for each copy.
How Similar images and duplicates differ
The table below summarizes the main differences.
| "Similar" | "Duplicates" | |
|---|---|---|
| "Matches" | Visually alike images | Identical file content |
| "When it runs" | On demand in file preview | Automatically after upload |
| "Scope" | Current gallery | Whole workspace (same hash) |
| "Action" | Browse related images | Review, keep one copy, archive the rest |
| "Different crops or re-exports" | May appear as similar | Do not count as duplicates |
Which feature to use
Use "Similar" when you ask: "What else in this gallery looks like this photo?"
Use "Duplicates" when you ask: "Did we upload the exact same file more than once?"
Two photos of the same moment with different crops or compression may show up under "Similar" but will not appear in duplicate detection unless the files are byte-for-byte identical.